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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
William Shakespeare is best known as a playwright. When you think of Shakespeare, you automatically think of plays -- "Romeo and Juliet," "Macbeth," "Hamlet," etc.
But he was also a poet of considerable skill. And while he sprinkled his various plays with poetry and songs, his poems are best appreciated when they're read all by themselves -- particularly the cluster of brilliant "Sonnets" that he penned. These works just have a unique, hauntingly vivid flavour of their own.
Each sonnet has no title, and is simply identified by numbers. And while Shakespeare's love poems are the best known of these works, he addresses different themes in theme -- old age, writer's block, loneliness, the cruelty of the world, sex, beauty, a mysterious rival poet, and Shakespeare's own complicated romantic feelings (love that "looks upon tempests and is not shaken").
And these poems are absolutely lovely. Some of these sonnets are pretty well-known ("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate") but most of them are a little more obscure. They have vivid metaphors and imagery ("let not winter's ragged hand deface," "gold candles fix'd in heaven's air") and hauntingly lovely passages ("What is your substance, whereof are you made,/That millions of strange shadows on you tend?").
And these sonnets really give you new insights into Shakespeare as a person -- he feels uncertainty, passionate love, unhappiness, lust and quirky humor. But while it's obvious these sonnets were deeply personal, they can still be appreciated on their own, particularly as love poetry.
William Shakespeare's "Sonnets" are rich with meaning, language and atmosphere -- the Elizabethan English takes a little deciphering, but it's well worth it.
But he was also a poet of considerable skill. And while he sprinkled his various plays with poetry and songs, his poems are best appreciated when they're read all by themselves -- particularly the cluster of brilliant "Sonnets" that he penned. These works just have a unique, hauntingly vivid flavour of their own.
Each sonnet has no title, and is simply identified by numbers. And while Shakespeare's love poems are the best known of these works, he addresses different themes in theme -- old age, writer's block, loneliness, the cruelty of the world, sex, beauty, a mysterious rival poet, and Shakespeare's own complicated romantic feelings (love that "looks upon tempests and is not shaken").
And these poems are absolutely lovely. Some of these sonnets are pretty well-known ("Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?/Thou art more lovely and more temperate") but most of them are a little more obscure. They have vivid metaphors and imagery ("let not winter's ragged hand deface," "gold candles fix'd in heaven's air") and hauntingly lovely passages ("What is your substance, whereof are you made,/That millions of strange shadows on you tend?").
And these sonnets really give you new insights into Shakespeare as a person -- he feels uncertainty, passionate love, unhappiness, lust and quirky humor. But while it's obvious these sonnets were deeply personal, they can still be appreciated on their own, particularly as love poetry.
William Shakespeare's "Sonnets" are rich with meaning, language and atmosphere -- the Elizabethan English takes a little deciphering, but it's well worth it.
reflective
sad
slow-paced
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Shakespeare was a dirty bastard. In the last 27 sonnets he chose to focus on adultery, sex, genitalia and venereal diseases. Which was kind of fun, actually. The first 126 sonnets, though beautiful, were more or less 126 ways of saying, "I love you so much, young boy, even when we are not together and even though you may be more beautiful on the outside than on the inside".
Highlights: Sonnet 18 (Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?), 116 (Let me not to the marriage of true minds - thanks to Kate Winslet) and 130 (My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun - thanks to Catherine Tate). Sonnet 130 must be read as quickly as possible, and don't forget to add "Bite me, alien boy!" in the end
Highlights: Sonnet 18 (Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?), 116 (Let me not to the marriage of true minds - thanks to Kate Winslet) and 130 (My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun - thanks to Catherine Tate). Sonnet 130 must be read as quickly as possible, and don't forget to add "Bite me, alien boy!" in the end
If I could write the beauty of yours eyes
And in fresh numbers number all your graces,
The age to come would say, "This poet lies;
Such heavenly touches ne'er touch'd earthly faces."
Amazing!
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
What to say about this pretty collection of Shakespeare's sonnets?
Well, I gifted this gorgeous edition to myself for my birthday. I do have a very pretty book of Shakespeare's plays it goes along with nicely. Why the sonnets though, and why now? Truth be told, it's all Sir Patrick Stewart's fault. When the lockdowns started everywhere, he (actually, his wife) had the brilliant idea of recording him reading a sonnet every day. So I followed alone and enjoyed his voice and some little anecdotes here and there and thus finally read the sonnets as well (I had known some of the most famous ones but not all).
Not much needs to be said about the most famous bard in the history of literature. The things we have to thank Shakespeare for (whoever he truly was) are almost inumerous. And obviously he did not only write plays (comedies just as much as tragedies and others) but also quite an impressive number of sonnets as well!
I've highlighted my favourites as status updates while reading this book. Yes, I got a little neglectful towards the end, you'll just have to read them all for sourselves to find your own favourite(s).
Brilliant works of art (though I have no problem admitting that there were one or two sonnets I had my problems with - interestingly, so did Sir Patrick, which made me feel better *lol*) in a very pretty slipcased hardcover that have brightened a few moments of my days this year. The classics usually are that for a reason and I was delighted to find that these underrated short(er) works are just as touching and beautiful as the full-length plays.
Well, I gifted this gorgeous edition to myself for my birthday. I do have a very pretty book of Shakespeare's plays it goes along with nicely. Why the sonnets though, and why now? Truth be told, it's all Sir Patrick Stewart's fault. When the lockdowns started everywhere, he (actually, his wife) had the brilliant idea of recording him reading a sonnet every day. So I followed alone and enjoyed his voice and some little anecdotes here and there and thus finally read the sonnets as well (I had known some of the most famous ones but not all).
Not much needs to be said about the most famous bard in the history of literature. The things we have to thank Shakespeare for (whoever he truly was) are almost inumerous. And obviously he did not only write plays (comedies just as much as tragedies and others) but also quite an impressive number of sonnets as well!
I've highlighted my favourites as status updates while reading this book. Yes, I got a little neglectful towards the end, you'll just have to read them all for sourselves to find your own favourite(s).
Brilliant works of art (though I have no problem admitting that there were one or two sonnets I had my problems with - interestingly, so did Sir Patrick, which made me feel better *lol*) in a very pretty slipcased hardcover that have brightened a few moments of my days this year. The classics usually are that for a reason and I was delighted to find that these underrated short(er) works are just as touching and beautiful as the full-length plays.
challenging
reflective
slow-paced